The Verkamp Collection is really two collections: the
detailed records of a thriving Grand Canyon business and a history of a prominent
northern Arizona family active in the religious, social, and financial life of the
community. Included are detailed financial records of Verkamp’s, the family curio
and souvenir business at the south rim of the Grand Canyon which catered to the
visitors at this most famous of national parks from the early 1900s until September
2008. Here are found ledgers, order books, bank statements, business correspondence,
and employee records, plus glimpses of the family’s sideline interests in sheep
raising and mining. Operating as a concessionaire of the National Park Service
entangled the family in a layer of bureaucracy unique to such enterprises, and so
the collection contains a record of the negotiations between Verkamps and the
federal government over a whole host of issues including rate schedules, concession
contracts, and even parking and employee housing. Family records include birth
certificates, baby books, family correspondence, personal journals, the Verkamp’s
involvement in construction and maintenance of the Shrine of the Ages Chapel at
Grand Canyon, and even matters concerning the position of the Catholic Church on
marriage and annulment. The collection also contains newspaper articles, magazine
pieces, and journal articles concerning topics of interest to the family and the
history of the local area. Supplementing the manuscripts are hundreds of photographs
and home movies capturing all facets of this family’s life in northern Arizona.
Included are family photographs, pictures taken on trips throughout Arizona and the
United States (including Grand Canyon), portraits of friends and other individuals
outside the family, plus photos taken of both the interior and exterior of the store
located on the south rim of the Grand Canyon.